Customer Reviews

Monsoon

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Sometimes, when a picture book deals with another culture, it sacrifices story and style for explanation to it's readers about the who where and what is going on. They can become text heavy and too pedantic for young listeners who are more interested in what happens next than a rounded education. The rarest-and the best-multicultural books don't try to explain at all, they let you discover as you read the story. Ms. Krishnaswami's MONSOON is one such jewel of a picture book. It tells the story of a young Indian girl waiting for the monsoon to come after all the hot, dry weather. It shows the cycle of seasons that is necessary for living and the simple poetic beauty of the place the narrator lives.

The theme of this story--a child impatiently waiting for a change in the weather-is a fairly common one in literature, especially picture books. But the heart and soul of this story is India, and properly so. It's no surprise to anyone that reads this picture book that the author grew up in India. In the story India is not a far away or exotic place, it is home-and Ms. Krishnaswami's poetic prose paints that love of her home on every page, with every word. The text on each page is brief, but it is text to be savored, full of rich imagery as everyone prepares for the monsoon rains. This is clear from the very first line: "All summer we have worn the scent of dust . . ." The author does not fall back on old clichés, but finds new metaphors to describe the town and the coming rains. The result is description that is refreshingly vibrant and just different enough to tantalize--but not to alienate-readers. It allows me to step into another country as if I were a native, experiencing the anticipation through the young narrator as she waits, worries and hopes for the rains to come. At the very back of the book the author has included a page of information about the monsoons and India for those who want to understand the 'what' and 'where' of the story better. The addition of the information at the back allows the author to accomplish the goal of sharing the knowledge without allowing it to bog down the text of the story itself.

All that, and I haven't even mentioned the pictures yet. This is Jamel Akib's first picture book. I, for one, hope it is only the first of many. The artist has perfectly matched pictures to Ms. Krishnaswami's marvelous text. Vivid colors with the soft edges give the images a slightly dreamy and comforting sense of familiarity. Golds and warm reds and misty blues dominate the palette, making the book feel rich and sensuous. The scenes themselves are delightfully clear portrayals of life in an Indian city, with cows wandering down the streets next to the cars, spice merchants selling their wares, a modern house with patterned rug and wall hangings. The effect is contemporary and yet culture specific. Like the author's text, the pictures never become so foreign as to lose the reader, evoking comfort, but including elements and details that never let the audience forget the setting.

If you want to introduce your child to India for any reason, this is an excellent first step. The images and text provide fertile ground for sparking a child's interest and curiosity and giving parents a starting point for discussing the Indian culture in greater detail. It is one of my favorite new discoveries in the world of multicultural books and deserves a look by any picture book reader who loves the delicious feel of diving into rich art and image-rich language. Best for children of four years and up, and for adults of all ages.
If you enjoy this, you might want to look for THE DAY OF AHMED'S SECRET by Florence H. Parry and COME ON RAIN! by Karen Hesse.

Happy Reading! ^_^ Shanshad

I can't decide if I love the beauty of the paintings or the words more in this picture book. My overwhelming reaction was nostalgia for India, where I grew up, yet the book appealed to my toddler, who has no memories of India. She gave it her five star rating, by saying "Again" when I finished reading it - that's reserved for the most captivating picture books.

I received this book yesterday and read it to my 2 1/2 year old daughter. (I try to get books about India whenever possible because it's the land of my husband's birth.) She asked me to read it twice through and then said, "That's a good story, Mommy!" And we've read it twice already today!

I don't think anything else needs to be said!

I bought this for my nephew's 2nd birthday (which was, coincidentally, spent in India during the monsoons). I almost wanted a copy of it for myself, so evocative were the illustrations and text. My nephew is almost 4 and his parents tell me that it is one of his favorite books. He's at an age where the appeal of a book does not of course lie in the memories it evokes, but in how captivating the the illustrations and the story are. I have to add that this is not one of those tiresome books that presents India as the exotic land of snakes and snake-charmers, and that in itself is a huge selling point.